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Student Achievement

The mission of Southeastern Louisiana University is to lead the educational, economic,
and cultural development of southeast Louisiana. Through our strategic planning process,
we have identified strategic priorities (see Vision 2025) and student achievement goals for accomplishing our mission.

The success of our students is key to accomplishing the University’s mission. To
lead the educational, economic, and cultural development of our region, it is important
for Southeastern students to be continuously enrolled to complete coursework and earn
grades that will allow them to progress towards graduation; graduate; and, when applicable,
pass licensing exams required for employment in their chosen fields. Southeastern
uses multiple measures for assessing overall student achievement and success.

Undergraduate Graduation Rates: First-time Full-time Freshmen

Southeastern uses the traditional, nationally-recognized six-year Integrated Postsecondary
Education Data System (IPEDS) Graduation Rates measure as one means of assessing student
achievement. The six-year IPEDS graduation rate is a federal reporting standard. The
IPEDS graduation rate is the percentage of first-time full-time degree-seeking freshmen
who graduate within six years of their initial summer or fall semester of full-time
coursework at a university. Students taking 12 credit hours or more in a semester
are considered full-time.

For example, Southeastern’s IPEDS graduation rate reported in the 2019-2020 academic
year includes data from students who began their baccalaureate studies as first-time
full-time students at Southeastern in Fall 2013 or the prior summer. Those students
are referred to as the 2013 freshman cohort. The IPEDS graduation rate covers the
time frame from summer/fall 2013 through the 2018-2019 academic year. The IPEDS graduation
rates reported in 2019-2020 (2013 cohort) does not include students who began as first-time
full-time students during any other semester or term, or who transferred to Southeastern
from another college or university, or who began Southeastern as a part-time student.

Southeastern’s goal is to increase its six-year IPEDS graduation rate to 42% (or a
3-year average of 42%) by the 2020-2021 reporting year of the 2014 cohort (2019-2020
= sixth academic year), 42.5% (or a 3-year average of 42.5%) by the 2023-2024 reporting
year of the 2017 cohort (2022-2023 = sixth academic year), and 43% by the 2025-2026
reporting year of the 2019 cohort (2024-2025 = sixth academic year).

Retention Rates: First-time Full-time Degree-Seeking Freshmen

For students to graduate in a timely manner, it is important for them to be continuously
enrolled to complete degree requirements. Students who maintain full-time enrollment
from their first year to second year and from their first year to third year are more
likely to graduate within at least six years. Thus, Southeastern is striving to increase
its first-to-second-year freshmen cohort retention rate to 67.3% (or a 3-year average
of 67.3%) by 2019-2020, 68.5% (or a 3-year average of 68.5%) by 2022-2023, and 70%
(or a 3-year average of 70%) by 2024-2025.

Second Year

Freshman Cohort

Retention Rate

2014

2013

62.0%

2015

2014

64.2%

2016

2015

62.6%

2017

2016

65.9%

2018

2017

67.3%

2019

2018

68.0%

Goal Exceeded

In addition, we are working to increase our first-to-third-year freshman cohort retention
rate to 55% (or a 3-year average of 55%) by 2019-2020, 56% (or a 3-year average of
56%) by 2022-2023, and 57% (or a 3-year average of 57%) by 2024-2025.

Most undergraduate programs are structured so that full-time students can graduate
in four years. The typical baccalaureate degree program at Southeastern requires 120
credit hours. Thus, to graduate in four years, students must typically complete 30
credit hours of required coursework each academic year. In addition, students are
required to maintain a grade point average of at least 2.0. However, Southeastern
would like to see its students maintain a somewhat higher grade point average each
year, indicating greater acquisition of the knowledge and skills needed upon graduation.

Southeastern is working to increase the percentage of freshman cohort students who
complete their first academic year with at least 30 credit hours and a grade point
average of at least 2.3. We expect the percentage to increase to 50% by 2019-2020,
52% by 2022-2023, and 54% by 2024-2025.

First Year

Freshman Cohort

Completed 30 Credit Hours with a GPA of at Least 2.3

2013-2014

2013

39.0%

2014-2015

2014

38.8%

2015-2016

2015

37.3%

2016-2017

2016

44.0%

2017-2018

2017

47.9%

2018-2019

2018

49.9%

We are also working to increase the percentage of freshman cohort students who complete
their second and each subsequent academic year with at least 30 credit hours and a
grade point average of at least 2.5.

For the second year, we expect the percentage to increase to 35% by 2019-2020, 37%
by 2022-2023, and 39% by 2024-2025.

Second Year

Freshman Cohort

Completed an Additional 30 Credit Hours with a GPA of at Least 2.5

2014-2015

2013

28.6%

2015-2016

2014

28.2%

2016-2017

2015

26.1%

2017-2018

2016

32.8%

2018-2019

2017

35.8%

Goal Exceeded

For the third year, we expect the percentage to increase to 27% by 2019-2020, 29%
by 2022-2023, and 31% by 2024-2025.

Third Year

Freshman Cohort

Completed an Additional 30 Credit Hours with a GPA of at Least 2.5

2015-2016

2013

25.2%

2016-2017

2014

25.2%

2017-2018

2015

24.4%

2018-2019

2016

29.7%

Goal Exceeded

For the fourth year, we expect the percentage to increase to 26% by 2019-2020, 29%
by 2022-2023, and 31% by 2024-2025.

Southeastern has implemented a number of initiatives to help students succeed and
lessen the likelihood of their being placed on academic probation or suspension.
Data from Southeastern and across the nation indicate that first-time full-time freshmen
who successfully complete their first year are more likely to graduate. Thus, we are
working to help students develop strategies to prevent being placed on academic probation
at the end of their first semester and on academic suspension at the end of their
second semester. The second semester is the first time a student may be suspended
for failure to maintain the required grade point average.

Southeastern expects to decrease the percentage of freshman cohort students on academic
probation at the end of their first semester to 20% by 2019-2020, 18% by 2022-2023,
and 17.5% by 2024-2025.

First Semester

Freshman Cohort

Percentage on Academic Probation

Summer/Fall 2013

2013

31.2%

Summer/Fall 2014

2014

30.1%

Summer/Fall 2015

2015

28.6%

Summer/Fall 2016

2016

20.6%

Summer/Fall 2017

2017

21.6%

Summer/Fall 2018

2018

18.9%

Goal Met

We expect to decrease the percentage of freshman cohort students on academic suspension
at the end of their second semester to 11% by 2019-2020, 10.5% by 2022-2023, and 10%
by 2024-2025.

Second Semester

Freshman Cohort

Percentage on Academic Suspension

Fall 2013/Spring 2014

2013

16.4%

Fall 2014/Spring 2015

2014

16.8%

Fall 2015/Spring 2016

2015

15.3%

Fall 2016/Spring 2017

2016

11.4%

Fall 2017/Spring 2018

2017

11.5%

Fall 2018/Spring 2019

2018

09.1%

Goal Exceeded

Number of Degrees Awarded

The IPEDS cohort graduation rate is an important measure of student success in that
it is the standard measure for reporting data at the federal level. However, those
data are limited to students who began their baccalaureate studies as a full-time
degree-seeking student in a fall semester at Southeastern. In contrast, the total
number of degrees awarded as a measure of student achievement includes all students.
To help achieve its mission, Southeastern seeks to increase the number of baccalaureate
and master’s degrees we award relative to the number awarded in 2017-2018.

Southeastern has set goals of awarding 1,826 baccalaureate degrees in 2019-2020, between
1,826 and 1,900 in 2020-2021 and in 2021-2022, 1,900 in 2022-2023, between 1,900 and
1,950 in 2023-2024, and 1,950 in 2024-2025.

Academic Year

Number of Baccalaureate Degrees Awarded

2013-2014

1,976

2014-2015

1,933

2015-2016

1,831

2016-2017

1,729

2017-2018

1,826

2018-2019

1,758

Southeastern has set goals of awarding 271 master’s degrees in 2019-2020, between
271 and 300 in 2020-2021 and 2021-2022, 300 in 2022-2023, between 300 and 325 in 2023-2024,
and 325 in 2024-2025.

Academic Year

Number of Master's Degrees Awarded

2013-2014

392

2014-2015

349

2015-2016

348

2016-2017

319

2017-2018

271

2018-2019

288

Licensure/Certification Examination Pass Rates

Some professions require passage of a licensure or certification exam in addition
to a degree. Some of Southeastern’s professional degree programs use state and/or
national exams for entry into the major. For others, discipline-specific accrediting
agencies require minimum passage rates among the program’s graduates.

Southeastern students have historically performed well on professional licensure and
certification exams. Our goal is to maintain our high passage rates and, beginning
in 2019-2020, document that those rates are at or above the national pass rate. Please
note that there are variable lag times between when students take an exam and when
the institutional and/or national pass rates are available, depending on the particular
exam.